Facebook Shuttering Virtual Giftshop (For Real)

It may be time for a virtual shopping spree. Facebook this week announced that it will be shutting down the three-year-old Facebook Gifts, in order to focus on other projects.

It may be time for a virtual shopping spree. Facebook this week announced that it will be shutting down the three-year-old Facebook Gifts in order to focus on other projects. Jared Morgenstern, an employee of the social network wrote in a blog post:

Closing the Gift Shop may disappoint many of the people who have given millions of gifts, but we made the decision after careful thought about where we need to focus our product development efforts. We'll be able to focus more on improving and enhancing products and features that people use every day, such as Photos, News Feed, Inbox, games, comments, the "Like" button and the Wall.

Sounds a bit like the perennial favorite political excuse, "I'm stepping down to spend more time with my family." Of course, for those who absolutely can't function in a social network environment without spending real money on fake "gifts," there are still plenty of third-party options from companies like Hallmark and someecards.

No word on whether Facebook will be liquidating its supply of free gifts.

Brian Heater has worked at a number of tech pubs, including Engadget, Laptop, and PCMag (where he served as Senior Editor). Most recently, he was as the Managing Editor of TechTimes.com. His writing has appeared in Spin, Wired, Playboy, Entertainment Weekly, The Onion, Boing Boing, Publishers Weekly, The Daily Beast and various other publications. He hosts the weekly Boing Boing interview podcast RiYL, has appeared as a regular NPR contributor and shares his Queens apartment with a rabbit named Lucy.
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